How long should my baby be on formula?

Question

I have twins...one boy and one girl. we've been giving them Good Start Supreme w DHA and ARA. They are are 10 months old and we're trying to weed them off formula but WOW do they eat a lot! should we start mixing whole milk w the formula or start giving them a little less? any ideas?

Answer 1

at one year you can start to ween them off formula no sooner than that!!

Answer 2

Most pediatricians say that you shouldn't give whole milk until at least after a year old and then they can have skim milk after 2 years old. I would say your twins should be eating quite a bit of baby food at 10 mos. old. My two-year old started eating table food at 1 year so that's also a thought as long as it's really smashed up well. You might try only giving them a bottle in the morning and at night to start and then maybe only a bottle at night in the next month or so. I know that the most pediatricians also want little ones to be off the bottle by a year old and if you keep up what you're doing you will have successfully done that. Good luck!

Answer 3

Keep them on the formula until they turn 1 year old, but do increase the amount of solid foods you give them. By now they should be having 3 meals a day in addition to the formula. If they don't have teeth or aren't proficient chewers you can just do simple soft foods or Gerber graduate foods. When they turn one you can start mixing whole milk in their formula for about a week before making the full switch :)

Answer 4

By 10 months of age they should be on solids, 100% juice and water which will cause them to generally consume less formula. They should remain on the formula until they are 1 yr of age. Do not give them cows milk some say it just curdles in their tummys. My husband gave our now 7 month old some 2% milk and when it came time to change his diaper it contained curdled milk and man did it smell!

Answer 5

Talk to your pediatrician. Mine advised us to start at 11 months mixing formula with milk. When your ped okays it. Start by mixing 1/3 milk 2/3 formula for a week then go to 1/2 milk 1/2 formula for a week then 2/3 milk 1/3 formula for a week. Then straight milk. I have two kids and that's what I did for them.

Answer 6

Babies need formula or breast milk for their first year. Unless the child can no longer hold down the formula, my son started vomiting at 10 months so i had to switch to whole milk. Of course doctor approved it. Otherwise i would have defiantly kept up the formula!!

Answer 7

With my first daughter my pediatrician said I should not even start giving her ANY dairy until she was at lest one year old. Their digestive system is not mature enough until then. It can also lead to allergies if you start too early. I would talk to your doctor first before weaning of formula. If they say it is ok, go for it, but from my experiences, one year is the absolute youngest. When they are ready, just go for the gusto and do milk alone. That is what I did.

Answer 8

Many doctors no recommend 18 months or longer before introducing formula. Really they should be on formula or breastmilk until they wean between 2-4 years. Cow's milk is a really poor substitute for breastmilk, cow's milk should not make up a large part of anyone's diet.

There is no good reason to wean from formula or breastmilk until babies are ready to eat a diet without dairy. You need to consider your motivations in this and whether you really have the best interest of your children in mind.

http://www.askdrsears.com/html/0/T000100.asp#T031014
SWITCHING TO MILK
I've been feeding my baby iron-fortified formula. When is it okay to switch to whole cow's milk? Research comparing cow's milk and formula-fed infants during the first year of life has shown that cow's milk is irritating to the intestines of a tiny infant, causing infants to lose a tiny bit of blood in their stools, contributing to iron deficiency anemia. There is very little iron in cow's milk anyway, and the iron that is there is poorly absorbed. Concern about iron-deficiency anemia has led the American Academy of Pediatrics, backed by solid research, to discourage the use of cow's milk in children under one year of age. One of America's top pediatric hematologists (blood specialist), the late Dr. Frank Oski , Professor and Chairman of the Department of Pediatrics at Johns Hopkin University (and co-author of a book entitled: Don't Drink Your Milk) advised parents to be cautious and not rush into the use of cow's milk, even during the second year of life. At present it would seem prudent to continue giving your baby iron-fortified formula during the second year of life and very gradually wean him to dairy products, beginning with yogurt. If your toddler generally has a balanced diet and routine hemoglobin tests show that he is not even close to being anemic, then switch from formula to whole milk sometime during the second year, but don't be in a hurry.

Answer 9

at first you might want to wait till they are closer to one year old. maybe 11 months old or so.... When you do try to switch.... only put in 2 oz of whole milk with formula (mixed with food it will be ok). maybe at meal time, give them a sippy cup with half form and half milk. (When they are at this age, they should be trying different solid foods.)Try it for about a week and make sure they don't have any allergic reactions..... once everything is feel and clear go ahead and try half formula and half milk.... eventually whole milk will be their drink of choice.
Good Luck!

Answer 10

when they turn 12 months they should get off the formula and onto whole milk, what a bank saver! My daughter will be 10 months this month and I cannot wait! mixing the milk is good also. You can give them zwieback toast, cheerios, chicken anything, my daughter eats anything, and she isn't even very big. Take care

Answer 11

They should not have regular milk until their first birthday and then you should mix it with the formula for the first week or so to get them used to it.